Cervantes, official organ of the Cervantes Society
of America, publishes scholarly articles in English and Spanish on Cervantes'
life and works, reviews, and notes of interest to cervantistas. Twice
yearly. Subscription to Cervantes is a part of membership in the Cervantes
Society of America, which also publishes a Newsletter. $20.00 a year
for individuals, $40.00 for institutions, $30.00 for couples, and $10.00
for students. Membership is open to all persons interested in Cervantes.
For membership and subscription, send check in dollars to Professor
WILLIAM H. CLAMURRO, Secretary-Treasurer, The
Cervantes Society of America, Dept. of Modern Languages, Denison University,
Granville, Ohio 43023. Manuscripts should be sent in duplicate, together
with a self-addressed envelope and return postage, to Professor
MICHAEL MCGAHA, Editor,
Cervantes, Department of Modern Languages, Pomona College, Claremont,
California 91711-6333. The SOCIETY requires anonymous submissions,
therefore the author's name should not appear on the manuscript; instead,
a cover sheet with the author's name, address, and the title of the article
should accompany the article. References to the author's own work should
be couched in the third person. Books for review should be sent to Professor
EDWARD FRIEDMAN, Book Review Editor,
Cervantes, Dept. of Spanish and Portuguese, Ballantine Hall, Indiana
University, Bloomington, Indiana 47405.

In this article we study the prologues to Don Quijote and
examine how, while introducing what is considered the first modern
novel, Cervantes prefaces the First and Second Parts of his masterpiece
with two genuine mini-novels, assuring the birth of yet another literary
genre: the novelistic prologue. New light is shed on the ontological
question of the mysterious friend who appears in the
Prólogo I, as well as on the significance of, and real drive
behind, the seemingly fierce attack on Avellaneda in the Prólogo
II.

The art of conversation is a form of dialogue found frequently
in the Renaissance, which presents a polite, well-mannered, and elegant
interaction between two speakers. To this courtesy and social refinement
Cervantes adds a new element, the subdialogue, which is an interior
level in the conversation that includes the thoughts and reflections of the
speakers. We can find the subdialogue in the festive symposium, which presents
a discussion of love and friendship in a courteous and well protected
environment. At one point in the conversation a character conceives a plan
to manipulate Don Quixote and Sancho, or perhaps a character reflects quietly
on the foolish beliefs of Don Quixote. The second type of conversation is
the asymmetrical dialogue: an interlocutor speaks abundantly while the other
listens politely to everything that is being said. By limiting his participation,
the listener expresses his courtesy, while at the same time he can sit back
to consider and reflect on the ideas of the speaker. In Cervantes' dialogue
the thoughts of characters are as important as the elegant gestures and polite
manners.